DENVER — This has been a rewarding time of year for Clayton Kershaw.
The veteran has cashed in $1 million bonuses with each of his last three starts and will add another $1 million when he makes his 16th start of the season on Thursday against the Colorado Rockies. Kershaw has also passed the required 90 days of service time on the active roster to vest another $4.5 million in bonuses.
With Thursday’s start, he will max out the $16 million contract he signed in February (which started with a $7.5 million base salary).
Financial rewards aside, the 37-year-old Kershaw is clearly enjoying being a healthy participant at the most important part of the season for the first time in awhile.
Last year, the chronic foot injury that would require offseason surgery ended his season in late August, and he did not pitch in the postseason. In 2023, he pitched down the stretch but was clearly compromised with a shoulder that would require offseason surgery and made just one disastrous postseason start (allowing six runs and retiring just one batter in an NLDS loss to the Diamondbacks).
In 2021, a forearm injury sidelined him for two months. He returned to pitch in September but was limited to five innings or fewer and left his last regular-season start in the second inning with forearm pain. He received a platelet-rich plasma (PRP) injection and did not pitch during the Dodgers’ postseason run that year either.
“I can,” Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said when asked if he can see Kershaw relishing being healthy down the stretch. “He does a good job of keeping the emotions to himself, as far as the reflection type of things. But when guys make big plays, he’s kind of taking it in more and then getting back to doing his job and getting hitters out. You look at, I don’t know if it was two years ago but certainly last year when he wasn’t able to be a part of things – this is why he came back, to be a part of a pennant race.”
Kershaw downplayed the frustration of missing out or pitching through injuries the past few years.
“I’d rather pitch than not. That’s why we’re here,” he said. “I’ve always appreciated being a part of the Dodgers because you’re never pitching just to pitch. There’s always a bigger goal, a bigger motivation behind it. That makes it have more meaning.
“I’m thankful for that. It’s special because you look around the league and there’s a lot of guys that never even have that opportunity that are really great players.”
Kershaw will take a 7-2 record and 3.01 ERA into his start against the Rockies.
TRAP GAMES
The Dodgers played poorly while being swept in a three-game road series against an Angels team without much to play for other than beating their SoCal neighbors.
After “heightening the focus” – Roberts’ words – to play the Padres over the weekend and reclaim sole possession of first place in the National League West, the Dodgers face a Colorado Rockies team with the worst record in baseball, a roster of young players, many getting their first taste of the major leagues, and no motivation other than to mess things up for the Dodgers.
Roberts said he took “the temperature of the room” to make sure there is no letdown during the four games in Colorado before another series against the Padres in San Diego this weekend.
“Where we’re at in mid- to late-August, all these games matter,” Roberts said. “I don’t expect a letdown. I expect those guys over there to really come after us and play with nothing to lose.
“You’ve got a lot of young players that, you play a team like us and you have your way, that builds confidence. We’re going to get their best. We’re prepared for that. … Teams try to kind of use us as a marker. We see that.”
FULL SPEED
Right-hander Roki Sasaki will make another rehab start with Triple-A Oklahoma City this week. Last Thursday, he pitched into the third inning, throwing 41 pitches. But his velocity was 93-94 mph after sitting at 96-97 mph during his live batting practice session the previous weekend.
Roberts said he was surprised by Sasaki’s velocity in OKC and talked to the young right-hander before the team left town Sunday.
“He just said that he didn’t realize what the velocity was,” Roberts said. “And he said to expect an uptick in velocity this week.”
ALSO
Hitting coach Aaron Bates is expected to rejoin the team this weekend in San Diego after being away for two weeks for health-related reasons. Bates is doing better and should be ready to resume his duties. While Bates was away, minor-league hitting coordinator Brent Pill joined the Dodgers and assumed some of his duties alongside Robert Van Scoyoc.
UP NEXT
Dodgers (RHP Emmet Sheehan, 3-2, 3.86 ERA) at Rockies (LHP Austin Gomber, 0-6, 6.75 ERA), Tuesday, 5:40 p.m. PT, SportsNet LA, 570 AM